The Axepress Lane: Latest on the Bernie Fine beat; can a pitcher be MVP?; and welcome back Sid the Kid

Brent Axe checks in Monday-Friday in the "Axepress Lane" with some quick thoughts on the big stories of the day, shares some interesting links/videos, and whatever is on his mind. Send him some feedback in the comments section below, via email at baxeman@yahoo.com, or on his radio show, "On the Block", heard weekdays 2-6 p.m. on The Score 1260 in Syracuse

On Thursday night, Steve Goldsmith was at the Sagemont School in Weston, Fla., watching a high school basketball game and a prospect on the Syracuse University radar, a junior named Malik Price-Martin, of Monsignor Pace.
His BlackBerry went off with a text message. A friend in Syracuse had heard something on the radio about Bobby Davis, ESPN and Bernie Fine. Goldsmith showed the message to the man sitting next to him — Bernie Fine.

OK, all set?

You are glad you did that now, aren't you?

Donnie just absolutely crushes it in that piece in reaching the man who was with Bernie Fine when he got the news of the ESPN story breaking Thursday night about the sexual abuse allegations being made by former SU ball boys Bobby Davis and Mike Lang.

It was certainly interesting to hear from a man who shared a very similar relationship with Fine as Bobby Davis did, but tells a much different story.

As Donnie writes...

Goldsmith is a 1992 graduate of Syracuse and knows Davis because he also came to be part of Fine’s family as a young boy. Their paths crossed many times, and Goldsmith said his story is so similar that “you could fit my name in the slot” for Davis’ name.
But Goldsmith said Fine showed him only kindness and never did anything inappropriate, certainly nothing in a sexual manner.

We knew this story was going to take many more twists and turns.

Speaking of which...

2. Fitzpatrick vs Miner

The Bernie Fine Investigation caused a first to happen in the office of Onondaga County District Attorney William Fitzpatrick on Monday.

But when that subpoena was delivered to Deputy Chief Shawn Broton, it was greeted with an obscenity, the district attorney said. “I’ve never seen this happen in my history with the DA’s office,” Fitzpatrick said of the refusal of the police department to cooperate with the prosecution.

Fitzpatrick said he has been asking for the records since Thursday and nothing has been provided. “I pleaded with people to turn over the records,” he said. “I don’t understand this. I’ve heard three different stories about what they have and don’t have.

Earlier Monday, Mayor Stephanie Miner issued a press statement saying no information would be shared until police complete their investigation. “I directed Chief (Frank) Fowler to allocate as much time and as many resources necessary to conduct a thorough, professional and complete investigation into this case from 2002 to the present,” Miner said in her statement.

The Syracuse Police Department will not be releasing information about the investigation to the media or any other entity in a piecemeal fashion,” Miner said.

Wow. Just... wow.

I think the Mayor and Syracuse Police have some 'splanin to do on why they won't share the records with the DA's office.

Maybe they have a legit reason not to release them at this time (afraid of leaks?) but it is rather curious why they chose THIS case as the one they don't run over records on.

I'm not privy to the inner workings of city hall and the politics of it all, nor do I care to know to be honest, but I'm not naive to it either.

But hearing things like this makes you question if everything is being done the proper way to find out the most important thing here...

The truth.

3. Why Can't a Pitcher be the MVP?

Justin Verlander is your American League MVP.

In the baseball world, those seven words have sent observers directly to one side of the fence or the other.

Those in the baseball world are praising the bold move by the voters or are beginning a campaign to take away the vote from them.

Verlander won the AL Pitching Triple Crown going 24-5 with a 2.40 ERA and 250 strikeouts, the most wins in the major leagues since Oakland's Bob Welch went 27-6 in 1990.

In a game deeply connected to numbers, this news is very unsettling to certain baseball people based on a simple number.

They don't think Verlander makes enough appearances to justify an award like this.

"I'd wrestled with this for a long time. If I was ever going to vote for pitcher for MVP, it would be him this year. "He hasn't appeared in 79 percent of their games, any starting pitcher really doesn't appear in 79 percent of his team's games in a year.

"Would you vote for an NFL quarterback for MVP if he only appeared in three of his team's 16 games, which would be 21 percent? So that's part of it. Another part of it is I think they're apples and oranges. The guys that are in there every day, there's a grind to a season that a starting pitcher doesn't, I don't think, experience the way the everyday position players do playing 150, 160 games."

OK, good point. But all we ever hear about in baseball is how important good starting pitching is.

So, which one is it?

Verlander changes the game every time he takes the mound not only for his incredible ability, but the surge of confidence he brings his team every time he takes the hill.

And I like the word "valuable" when you apply to what Verlander meant to the Tigers.

I have always said that "Player of the Year" and "MVP" could be two separate awards.

This is one of those years where "Most Valuable Player" and "Player of the Year" merge into one.